... when his father returns home from war. With abundant humour and considerable pragmatism, O"Connor depicts in this story the "Oedipus stage" of a boy's life alluding continuously and wittily to Freudian psychoanalysis. The focus of the story is the relationship between Larry and his father. It is ... as a stranger who suddenly steals his mother's love and attention away from him. Larry is a very possessive, self-cantered and selfish boy. He despises the fact that his mother is paying more attention to his father. He becomes extremely jealous of his father and starts competing ... explore...

• Word Count: 513
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... male and female genders. The main character, Anson Hunter, the rich boy', thinks he is socially above the few women that appear throughout the short story. His belief that women are below him causes Anson to be arrogant and conclusive about the women he meets. This attitude is what eventually leads him to ... Paula on her success. They are often seen having serious conversations together. Paula represents all women, because how Anson treats her is how he feels about women in general. This is proven when the narrator writes "Oddly enough, Anson was as engrossed in the dialogue as she (Pa...

• Word Count: 1512
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... is another minor character who influences the boy's character. From the story we can see that the boy has no parents. As a result, he lives with his uncle and aunt with lack of attention and love. In the part where his uncle forget's about the boy's plan to go to the bazaar, though reminded in ... the morning, we can see clearly the indifferentness of the uncle towards the boy. By ... seeing how the uncle treats the boy, it is pretty obvious why the boy turned out to be so isolated, lonely, and dull ... him to change. As I have pointed out above, the minor characters have an important ...

• Word Count: 583
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... buy things, and that Mangan's sister is just a girl with whom he had a meaningless conversation with. The fact that the Boy was "remembering with difficulty why he had come..." (Joyce) shows that he does not even care anymore about the bazaar and getting the gift for Mangan's sister. With this, Joyce uses a change in character to display the epiphany in ... the story. After the Boy's epiphany, he changes from an innocent boy to a young adolescent dealing with the realities of life. The change in the ... . At the beginning of the story, the word choice used sets a content tone. The boy d...

• Word Count: 992
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... and betrayal. Great Aunt Mary, now dying, had lived a private life. As a child the boy often asked questions about her past, which lead to natural curiosity. On finding an opportunity, when his aunt was out, the boy grasped it and decided to read her private letters, revealing a love affair between herself and a ... lead to the betrayal. Another important aspect of the language used in Secrets is imagery. By looking at the imagery it is possible to learn more about the characteristics of the aunt. A vase of irises is used in various parts of the story to symbolise the aunt. " a cut-glas...

• Word Count: 1441
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... , the unnamed narrator tells the story of a seemingly short incident in a boy's life. This incident has actually brought about a realization or an epiphany of a truth about life that is more of realism than of a warm and fuzzy moment within the boy's young existence. The themes of "Araby" are those of paralysis of anticipation ... that moment on, his attending the bazaar and retrieving some Eastern treasure back to his love pervaded his thoughts through every daily activity. The boy's life of sitting in class, going through the motions of monotonous activities seem to stand between "Arab...

• Word Count: 1460
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... mature, for example, when he loses the dog he is rational in his thinking of how to explain to Lucille about losing the dog. Miller is foreshadowing that the boy in the end of the story is more mature and different than a normal 13 year old. Miller applies these examples to demonstrate the level of maturity, intelligence, and independence of ... was ashamed and shook his head" (Miller, 74). After his loss of innocence the boy's mother had become a sexual creature to him. The mother initially pays very little attention to he boy and it is evident by the boy's independent nature. For exa...

• Word Count: 1075
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... cliffhanger, there are multiple signs throughout that point towards their son's death. "Signs and Symbols" takes place within the United States where a boy suffers from "Referential Mania" which is a condition that makes one believe that objects around them are conspiring against oneself. This condition leaves their ... son constantly having to decipher, through codes and patterns, what these objects are saying about him. Consequently, the narrator of the story is writing with the intention of proving that the mentally ill son is going to die, or ... are a dead train, rain, and the dyi...

• Word Count: 1066
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... In the father's defense we are left with a disclaimer that the father is only trying to institute a foundation of culture upon his son. The boy was not thrust into this environment with the intent of exposing him to the tribulations of a nightclub atmosphere. It becomes easy for the father to ... spend with his son he is able to have fun and not worry about the effects of his teachings. The boy who is our narrator throughout the story becomes Wolff's opposition to the father character. Right through the story the boy demonstrates qualities of restraint and level headedness. Almost everyt...

• Word Count: 657
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... In the father's defense we are left with a disclaimer that the father is only trying to institute a foundation of culture upon his son. The boy was not thrust into this environment with the intent of exposing him to the tribulations of a nightclub atmosphere. It becomes easy for the father to ... spend with his son he is able to have fun and not worry about the effects of his teachings. The boy who is our narrator throughout the story becomes Wolff's opposition to the father character. Right through the story the boy demonstrates qualities of restraint and level headedness. Almost everyt...

• Word Count: 657
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... , the River, and Sheila Mant" is a short story about a boy's conflict between his summer crush Sheila Mant and his love for bass fishing. The boy was enchanted with Sheila. " to me she appeared unutterably suave, the epitome of sophistication" (Wetherell 192). By mid August, the boy had gained enough confidence to ask Sheila to accompany him to ... unconsciously dropped the lure into the river. After he had picked Sheila up and started on their way she commented on how fishing was dumb. The boy didn't want to appear stupid and tried to conceal his fishing gear. When he moved the rod, the ...

• Word Count: 324
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

"Araby" 1914 James Joyce 1882-1941 The short story, "Araby", written in 1914, by James Joyce is about a very depressed and lonely boy who decides to go to an eastern-styled bazaar in hopes that it will ease his miserable life. Throughout the story he battles with many ... , the themes of isolation and control are somewhat connected because the reason for the boy's emotional distance is his lack of control over his life. The story starts off as the boy describes his neighborhood. A feeling of alienation and bleakness prevails. The street the boy lives on is a dead end; he is literally trapped...

• Word Count: 253
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... "like a wild thing," (1). The boy was not thinking of safety; he did not care, so he jumped around wildly. Swinging a gun, making weird noises, running and jumping around madly; these are definitely not acts of maturity. Adulthood involves thinking ahead about possible consequences and not necessarily doing what sounds ... fun, but what is in the best interest of others. The boy also views the world and life in a childish way. He feels that everything depends on ... position on high has been lowered. He is beginning to realize the truth about everything that he has imagined. The circle ...

• Word Count: 1120
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... explains how the protagonist's "eyes were often full of tears." (pg. 87) This sentence relates to the boy's feelings about the girl, that because he was "filled with tears," he never could have seen clearly what he actually thought about the girl. He doesn't fully understand his feelings, keeps having conflicts within himself and describes it as "confused ... adoration." (pg. 87) In the scene in paragraph five, the boy goes shopping and explains how the streets were filled with "drunk men and bargaining ... ; with the use of religious symbols and sexual implications. He tries to make hi...

• Word Count: 701
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... when his father returns home from war. With abundant humour and considerable pragmatism, O"Connor depicts in this story the "Oedipus stage" of a boy's life alluding continuously and wittily to Freudian psychoanalysis. The focus of the story is the relationship between Larry and his father. It is ... as a stranger who suddenly steals his mother's love and attention away from him. Larry is a very possessive, self-cantered and selfish boy. He despises the fact that his mother is paying more attention to his father. He becomes extremely jealous of his father and starts competing ... explore...

• Word Count: 513
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... the River, and Sheila Mant" The short story, The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant", by W.D. Wethrell is about a 14 year-old-boy who is infatuated with a 17 year-old-girl named Sheila Mant. This boy, who is unquestionably obsessed with Sheila, finally acquires an exuberance amount of courage and asks her out. Shelia then agrees ... accompany her to the upcoming dance. Therefore, the evening prior to the dance, he tidies up and polishes his canoe. Also while doing so, the boy drops his fishing line into the water and inattentively forgets to remove it. Later that same night, he canoes over...

• Word Count: 799
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... thinks he is in love with a girl, but in reality all he has are his romantic thoughts and an unrealistic idolization. It is a story about self-deception - a young boy's realization that he has misled himself into thinking his love was pure and real, when in fact it was the opposite. Towards the end of ... to her, except a few casual words, and yet her name was like a summons to all my foolish blood" (Joyce 477). The boy is extraordinary lovesick for a girl he knows so little about. He sums up his feelings for her perfectly when he says, "But my body was like a harp and her words and gestu...

• Word Count: 784
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... fulfill a promise he made to her, hoping to win her over. The promise that is made is that he will bring Mangan's sister a present from Araby, a bazaar. The young boy faces many conflicts throughout the story such as pleasing his secret obsession, making it to the bazaar, and mainly proving himself ready for the adult world. The narrator describes how ... she cannot go because she has retreat that night with her convent school. He tells her that if he goes he will bring her something back. This torments the young boy all night as he thinks of the possibilities that could happen with a suc...

• Word Count: 508
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... that come to one's mind to describe James Joyce's short story, "Araby." In it, he writes about a boy who falls deeply in love with his best friend's sister, who through the story, doesn't seem to notice him or care about him. The boy, who has yet to be named, lives in a poor and run-down town. During the story ... and he does not know her name. He even pulls up the blinds so that he can watch her. These points show the boy's immaturity, but such can be expected from a boy his age. He thinks about Mangan's sister and visualizes her image everywhere he goes. He idolizes her as an angel. She...

• Word Count: 1188
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... beleive in what you see. It is about a boys lors of an hero, and of his rolemodel. Every thing he has beleived in all his life turns out not to bee real. The Setting The story takes place somewhere in Ireland. When the boy sees the Whaler for the first time he ... across several fields, where his eye catches Mrs. Early. The Narrator When the boy meets the Whaler in the beginning, his expectations are high. This is an understandable thing when you are about to meet your idol. The narrator is a young boy with an imaginative and naive mind. He characterizes the Whaler as a grand, ... stron...

• Word Count: 751
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... in the future. The author puts everything into perspective, which makes the reader feel like he is experiencing what is happening in the story. " I hoped that the boy, my brother's son, would soon come across the broad black area of plowed ground, carrying the jar of cool water."(1) The uncle had his mind on the water ... he is doing, and it adds suspense to the story because you aren't sure what might happen next. "I almost ran over the snake and I was thinking of the boy, and the water- (1) This proves that the foreshadowing that had been demonstrated came true. " the gleeful of bruta...

• Word Count: 454
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... the waves crashing onto his face. In the short story 'Through the Tunnel' one example of alliteration is 'bled so badly' which shows that boy was losing blood and becoming dizzy which made him think he was trapped and frightened. The Contrast within The Surfer can be either the beauty and ... and the coming of the rising tide and larger more dangerous waves. In the short story, there was much negative thoughts of killing himself and about the boy going unconscious and drowning but there were some thoughts of victory, of triumph when he will accomplish his goal and come back alive. The ...

• Word Count: 760
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... it was only me that was frightened, not Daddy. It was queer that we didn't feel the same about it. And it was queerer still that what he said didn't help, didn't stop me being frightened." This shows that the boy can't always depend on his father and he will need to make his own secure world. The ... boy learns that he must be in charge of his own safety and security in the world. " It was all the fear which would come to me, all the unknown; all that Daddy didn't know about, and couldn't save me from. That is how the world ... would be for me, and the strange life I would live." This ...

• Word Count: 430
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... you may put off your bazaar for this night of Our Lord- (Joyce 76), in which the boy is almost not able to go to Araby due to his Uncle's absence in order to give him money. There is also the young boy's confusion about sexuality and religion as shown in this passage, "All my senses seemed to desire to veil themselves and ... , feeling that I was about to slip from them, I pressed the palms of my hands together until they trembled, murmuring: O love! O love! many times ... ."" (Joyce 74). The story builds on the young boy's excitement over a girl, Mangan's sister, in to which he owes his...

• Word Count: 1024
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... "" by Langston Hughes, Langston himself writes an autobiographical short story in first person point of view. A brief synopsis of the story is that a young boy with no religious belief is influenced and convinced by his aunt to attend a church rally and to accept Christ into his life. Given the fact that ... present their theme and message they want to send the audience. Langston says "That night, for the first time in my life but one for I was a big boy twelve years old - I cried. I cried, in bed alone, and couldn't stop. " It's clear to the reader that Langston felt pain, betrayal, and...

• Word Count: 1548
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School